Fossilized skull of “cat-sized deer” found in Badlands National Park is the first of its kind

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - In 2016, a geology intern at Badlands National Park spotted a light gray object on the rocks that caught her attention. When she took a closer look, the intern realized this object was a tiny, fossilized skull from an ancient animal. The intern alerted Park Rangers who were hiking with her, and the fossil was transported back to the fossil preparation lab at the park’s Ben Reifel Visitor Center.

Finds like these are relatively common in the badlands, as rock erodes quickly and continuously unearths bones from millions of years ago. As a result, the fossil preparation lab has several samples to examine. It wasn’t until the fossil was carefully prepared and Park Ranger Mattison Shreero led an initiative to further examine the skull that researchers realized its significance.

Shreero and her team quickly deduced the skull was from an ancient animal related to deer. These animals were much smaller than the deer found across South Dakota today, only around the size of a large rabbit or a small house cat. Records of animals like these are well-precedented in the Badlands, but closer examination revealed a more significant finding: this animal was a different species than others they had seen, and it came from a different period in time altogether.

“We have never seen a skull to this animal before,” Shreero said. “Prior to this, this species was only known from fragments of lower jaws. So, we had absolutely no cranial features to go off of until this one was found.”

The only similar animal alive today is native to Southeast Asia, and Shreero said this discovery will help to determine how these creatures migrated and evolved throughout history.

Visitors who find fossils in Badlands National Park are encouraged to notify Park Rangers. Pictures of the fossil and, if possible, GPS coordinates will help paleontologists on site to find, identify, and extract them.

The skull, along with a collection of other fossils found in the park, will be available for the public to view at the fossil preparation lab when it opens for the summer May 25.

More information on how park visitors can report fossil discoveries can be found on the National Park Service website.

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